Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said on Monday that Athens was in continuous consultation with its EU partners on how to establish the right framework for Turkey's accession into the European Union (EU).   Turkey had not actively demonstrated its intention to adopt European principles and values, Karamanlis said after meeting his Italian counterpart Romano Prodi.

He said "Turkey must realize that its progress in the accession negotiations depends on its progress in fulfilling the criteria and conditions it has agreed with the EU."  Prodi said the EU should "leave a door open" for Turkey while at the same time clarifying that the accession criteria were the same as those applying to other candidate countries.

The two prime ministers also discussed the situation in Kosovo, expressing support for Serbia's European orientation.  Karamanlis stressed that a solution for the future status of Kosovo should be accepted by all the sides involved, and that the European orientation of southeastern Europe serves as an important factor in the stability of the broader region.

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Source: Xinhua